London Calling #2 2019

The times the London Calling festival was only all about new British bands is long gone. The bands are not only strictly from Britain now and the music is more diverse than ever. It was mostly indie about ten years ago when we visited the festival at Paradiso frequently. But after a few editions with mostly mediocre bands we stopped going for a while. Now post-rock, garage rock, punk, shoegaze and new wave bands are coming to this festival and things are interesting again.

London Calling at Paradiso Amsterdam, October 25 + 26 2019

It's also part of the Indiestad pass selection, which makes it almost a no brainer to go and try to cherry-pick the best bands. That isn't always as easy as it sounds, since trying to make it into the overcrowded small hall is always extremely difficult so we decide to stay downstairs in the main hall and watch the bands there.

Friday October 25

RVG

Once started as Romy Vager Group, Australian band RVG draw inspiration from 80s bands like The Smiths, The Go-Betweens and The Soft Boys. Singer Romy Vager sings her lyrics with incredible power and heart, while at the same time playing catchy and clear guitar lines in the greatest The Smiths fashion. It truly is a great introduction to this band, who really are able to impress me.



Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

Night Moves

Also drawing inspiration from the 80s, all the way to their looks, but from a different perspective are Night Moves. They are drawn to the soft rock side of that era with poppy songs and warm synths. However this is not the most interesting part of the 80s and the sugar coated songs aren't really interesting. There isn't a lot of variation and after a while singer John Pelant's shriek voice is starting to get on my nerves.



Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | Spotify

The Murder Capital

Time to get things going again with Dublin post-punk group The Murder Capital, who had quite a year. Their name is buzzing around in the music scene also because of their intense live shows, as I got to witness myself a few months back. The band starts out with a couple of slow songs to build up the atmosphere. While they patiently build up the tempo the boys are all over the stage swinging their guitars around. Singer James McGovern walks around stage, working the crowd, delivering his dark vocals with great power. This is an angry band who have a lot to tell about what's bothering them and know how to draw attention. Of course it is it a lot of show, but at the same time these alpha males here on stage mean business. Their post-punk songs are dark, heavy and intense, clearly influenced by other post-punk bands from the Dublin area but also from their famous fellow Dubliners U2. By the end of their set, the Irish group has turned the whole floor into a wild pit and you'd wish they could keep going for a lot longer.



Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

Squid

I am really looking forward to Squid who were so good at the Into The Great Wide Open festival. This band is rising quickly and for a good reason. Their songs are very clever with Talking Heads and LCD Soundsystem references, where they know how to keep things interesting. Tonight they are bothered with a lot of sound problems, that don't really get fixed throughout their set. It doesn't get the band down, but their songs lose some detail because of that, which is exactly what makes them so good. Despite all of that, the band once again proves to be one of the most interesting new bands on the rise this year. The combination of groovy songs with incredible hooks and the somewhat hysterical vocals of Ollie Judge are spot on. It's hard to resist a song like 'The Cleaner' and I can't wait to see them again soon.



Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

Heavy Lungs

We finally can make it upstairs where we don't want to miss Heavy Lungs who have already kicked off their wild show. Like fellow Bristol citizens IDLES this is a wild punk band. Their music is even more intense, in the same style as METZ. The band's delivery is part of this as well, with wild singer Danny Nedelko leading the pack. The band keeps knocking you over with heavy punk songs in a ferocious way until you simply have to surrender and join the pit. If that is not enough, Nedelko jumps off stage to drag in the last doubters.



Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

After this explosive show I call it a night. This has been an incredible London Calling night, maybe one of the best in a long time.

Saturday October 26

After yesterday the line-up for today maybe looks a bit bleak. Although today has The Twilight Sad on the bill, which in itself is already a good reason to swing by Paradiso.

Orville Peck

I walk in during Orville Peck's show and wasn't quite ready for a cowboy band. Singer Peck, described as "a masked gay crooner", is dressed in a western style Mexican themed glitter suit. He is wearing a kind of "Lone Ranger" mask with a veil. Like Peck everyone else in the band is wearing a cowboy hat. There is at least one hard core fan in front of the stage, as he wears a cowboy hat as well. Peck sounds like The King singing country songs, which in itself isn't that weird and could be interesting. His voice is pretty good and the band clearly can play. But this is definitely not my cup of tea and it sounds more like The King had a drink and a valium too many. The fan at the front loves it though and throws his hat onto the stage at the end of the set. I'd tip my hat to him if I wore one.



Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

The Twilight Sad

Every edition London Calling will have a band that has been around for a while and don't qualify as a new promising band. This time The Twilight Sad are the ones to play this spot, who played the festival ten years ago as well. The Scottish band has been around for over fifteen years and released its fifth album in January. I was expecting it to be full but that is not the case. But you can see many people came down to see this band though. They won't be disappointed as the band plays an inspired show. Singer James Graham sings with plenty of heart and emotion, together with a lot of theatre but never over the top. The band takes its time building up the dark songs, that have a lot of depth and detail. There are noise and krautrock elements in their music, which has great melodies and hooks as well. The band proves this tonight with a convincing show that pleases most of us here.



Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

YAK

Like yesterday I'm going out with a bang tonight, this time with YAK. I saw this band earlier this year in the summer at the Loose Ends festival and liked their raw psychedelic garage rock sound a lot. Tonight the trio convince me even more with a lively and hot rock show. It reminds me of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion now and then. The songs are heavy with pounding drum grooves and fuzzed out guitars. Singer Oli Burslem works up a sweat and the youngsters at the front are willing and eager to dance. It is a fitting end to a very good London Calling weekend.



Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

All Pictures

Read more!

On Stage: A Giant Dog + The Molochs + The OBN III's @ Paradiso Tolhuistuin

For quite some years Paradiso has been organizing the London Calling festival, that grew from a festival for unknown Britpop bands into a two day festival for promising new indie bands anywhere in the world. The last couple of days they even added an extra night the day ahead to warm everyone up. That's a lot of fun too.

A Giant Dog + The Molochs + The OBN III's at Paradiso Tolhuistuin Amsterdam, May 23 2019

Even better, this night is slightly different with some indie rock and punk bands, just the way I like it!

The OBN III's

It's still pretty quiet when The OBN III's start the evening. Yeah, that's a weird name, but it actually makes sense when you know Orville Bateman Neeley III is the frontman for this band. And a frontman with a capital F he is! Or actually, all capitals because he spends more time off the stage and walks around the small crowd until his mic cable decides otherwise. Their music is seventies The Stooges kind of punk, straightforward rock songs, with plenty of energy. The band is flexing their muscles, especially Neeley who keeps challenging the audience like a young Iggy Pop. In a more crowded room later at night when booze has been flowing freely for a while, he would have completely turned the place into a wild party. That is not happening tonight but it's a lot of fun nevertheless.

Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Spotify

The Molochs

At least we got a good warmup so we are more than ready for the next band. This group definitely got their sound down, a blend between The Stone Roses and The Smiths. Nice clear ringing guitar lines, a groovy bass and drums. But these guys looks really pale on stage and lack any form of energy. It makes their songs go dead and there simply is not a spark in sight to light it up. In the end it even gets weary and the show seems to last forever. Too bad when you clearly have enough skills to write good songs.

Official Website | SoundCloud | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Spotify

A Giant Dog

Fortunately the last band of the evening is here to get us back on our feet again. The band is described as one of Austin's thrilling bands, but that's an understatement. When the innocent looking Sabrina Ellis steps onto the stage and the band gets going, she turns into a wild animal. She's all over the place with little pirouettes, the best vogue dancing ever and one big ball of energy. On top of that, her voice is amazing and she's able to belt out her lyrics effortlessly while bouncing around stage.

It's as if you're watching a young Kate Bush on speed played fast forward. I am convinced I even spotted some Kate Bush in one of their songs but I can't get that cleared up. And boy the songs are great as well, heavy glamrock, punk and rock 'n' roll, all played by an active tight band that put all their heart in it. Definitely one of the most exciting live bands out there at the moment. I'm going to keep an eye out for them and listen to their records for sure.



Official Website | SoundCloud | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Spotify

This was a fun night. I was planning on going to at least one of the London Calling nights but in the end didn't make it. This night was a good alternative though.

All Pictures

Read more!

London Calling #1 2018

It’s been a while since I visited the London Calling festival, the get together for upcoming bands that in the past focused mostly on britpop bands. Nowadays their scope is a lot wider, but still it is about supporting new bands and give them a bigger stage and audience for a change.

London Calling #1 2018, May 25 2018

The festival does have a downside though: where bands take turns playing in the main hall and the small hall, most of the crowd moves between these stages. The small hall gets very crowded and it’s hard to get there on time. That’s why they have a screen in the main hall showing the band upstairs while the next band downstairs is already sound checking. It kind of makes me stay downstairs most of the time which isn’t the perfect way to experience the bands.

Frankie Cosmos
I do try to watch Frankie Cosmos, alter ego for Greta Kline, from the back of the small hall. I already know her music isn’t exactly what I like but her timid performance doesn’t exactly win me over either. There isn’t a lot happening on stage and the songs don’t really grab me. Sometimes a song appears to catch fire, then it dies down quickly. We decide to watch the remainder down stairs.

Official Website | Twitter | Facebook | SoundCloud | Spotify

Yungblud

Probably one of the most anticipated acts is Yungblud, or Dominic Harrison, the young singer who already has quite a big hit with ‘I Love You, Will You Marry Me’, that he brings early in the set. Harrison is a very energetic performer who keeps running and jumping across the stage. The songs are catchy and Harrison is making a lot of contact with the crowd. His songs are quite average though and his vocals aren’t really anything special. But together with his appearance and easy pop tunes you can see this going places.



Official Website | Twitter | Facebook | SoundCloud | YouTube | Spotify

Mattiel

We do not try to get in upstairs and decide to skip what’s next in the main hall, so we are on time to see Mattiel play. The American singer released a very good debut album with an amazing sound that reminds of early days rock 'n roll and rhythm 'n blues. Her sharp voice is quite unique but may need a bit of getting used to. Her compact songs are spot on though and she’s backed up by an amazing band. Without a doubt she’s one of the highlights of the night and a musician with a huge potential.



Official Website | Twitter | Facebook | Spotify

It is nice to discover new bands at this festival that most of the times has a few still to discover gems on offer. But the concept of the two stages that are too different in size makes it hard to really love. In the end I decide to skip the second day although it has a good line-up.

All Pictures

Read more!

Golden Spoon For London Calling

In the beginning the London Calling festival was all about promoting unknown bands from the London area. This slowly changed to promising Britpop bands and after that to indie bands in general. Now they are also adding established indie bands and this edition no one less than indie veterans Sebadoh and Spoon are lined up for the Saturday of the two day festival. Time to visit the festival again I'd say.

London Calling 2014 #2 at Paradiso Amsterdam, November 1 2014

The festival is always off to an early start, way too early for me, so by the time I arrive at the venue, Sebadoh have already taken the stage.



Sebadoh
Despite the fact this band has been around since 1986 I never saw them play before. They did go on a long break in 1999 and returned to the stage in 2007 for a reunion. Last year they even released a new album Defend Yourself. Bassist Lou Barlow, the only one left of the two founding members, also plays bass in Dinosaur Jr. and is accompanied by Jason Loewenstein on guitar and Bob D'Amico on drums. But the trio isn't having a great night. Besides playing a somewhat obscure set list with not many hits, they look extremely unhappy with their sound. Loewenstein is singing the first half of the show and keeps messing around with his guitar and mic stand. When he switches places with Barlow, this time it is Barlow who is clearly troubled by the sound. It results in a messy performance with lots of breaks and hiccups. Barlow claims "we are terrible at festival shows", followed by Loewenstein: "festival shows are terrible at us". Maybe so, at least tonight is clear they were not having their best day.

Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | Spotify

D.D. Dumbo
We watch the show by multi instrumentalist D.D. Dumbo, real name Oliver Hugh Perry, on the screen in the big hall. He brought a pile of pedals and other equipment including a loop station. This seems to be really popular nowadays and Perry uses it creatively while playing a twelve string guitar. It is of course quite clever what he's doing, but nothing we never saw before. Also his songs aren't all very original, but still he's able to play an entertaining set.

Official Website | SoundCloud | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Spotify



The Mispers
Young band The Mispers are quite excited to play here tonight, especially singer Jack Balfour Scott, who is going through all the rock poses he memorized very hard at home. He's putting way too much cheese on it, together with an annoying effect on his vocals, which is too much in the end. Their songs are very catchy and the violin is a nice addition. It is doubled by keyboard strings a lot though, which is a shame. The keyboard player is also playing bass now and then, which makes it clear they need a bass player, because the songs without bass lack groove. The music needs more variation and without bass it is missing depth, making the songs sound alike a lot. Still this band could get quite interesting in a few years.

Official Website | SoundCloud | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Spotify

Fever The Ghost
The small hall is packed for Fever The Ghost, but by the end of their show it's half empty. Covered in a cape, singer Casper Indrizzo's vocals are distorted most of the time, resulting in a spooky voice. He's backed up by lots of electronic noise, guitar and wild drums. There doesn't seem to be much of a direction in their music and the songs aren't allowed to breath, filling up every bit of space. But once and a while you can hear an interesting part of a song, especially when they take it more easy and get all psychedelic. It is actually quite interesting but this band needs to focus (a lot) and learn that less is more. There's no shortage of ideas that's for sure.

Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Spotify



Josef Salvat
After all this madness, Josef Salvat is taking it more slow. Judging from the big turn up, many people want to hear his cotton candy pop songs. This is working well for him, when he's keeping the songs small. After an intimate moment behind the piano, where he's asking in vain for a moment of silence, the music changes. The band is sticking layers of ugly keyboard parts and noise on top of the songs and is transforming them into mediocre top 40 tracks. I guess that's what Salvat is aiming for.



Official Website | SoundCloud | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Spotify



Spoon
Of course tonight's big headliner is Spoon, who came up with one of their best records in their career and probably of this year. They Want My Soul already shows the band is peaking and they are proving that tonight. With a spot on performance, for over one and a half hour, the band is playing perfect indie rock songs. It's a more than convincing show, downgrading all the other bands tonight to support act. Spoon is way too big for this festival, but I'm so glad they are here. The other bands must have watched them in awe, realizing the road to success is still long. That's okay, since it took Spoon twenty years to get to this point. Tonight they got the perfect example on how to entertain a crowd with great songs, played in a very tight way.



Official Website | SoundCloud | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Spotify

After this highlight we call it a day, since nothing can top this any more. It is as if we've witnessed an indie rock master class. Hopefully next time, the upcoming bands can surprise us again as well.

More Pictures

Read more!

London Calling Throws Great 20th Birthday Party

After skipping a few editions of the London Calling festival we decided it was time to pay it a visit again. This year they are celebrating their 20th anniversary and for this edition came up with a great line-up. Both days have some great and interesting bands lined up. Like always we only visit the second day. And because the small hall upstairs can get pretty crowded we decide to stay downstairs for the whole night and watch the bands playing the small stage on the big screen. Also traditionally we miss out on the first bands. So hopefully we can catch Peace and Oppossom some other time.

London Calling 2012 #2 at Paradiso Amsterdam, November 3 2012



Savages
This all-female band fronted by high heeled Jehnny Beth, who some may know as Camille Berthomier from John & Jehn, still have to come up with their first album, but already are the talk of the town. And so the main hall is buzzing with anticipation when the dark and punky songs pound away. It's a thrilling show, where especially bass player Ayse Hassan is impressing with great pumping grooves. They could use more variation and dynamics though, but it's obvious why this band is drawing all this attention. The combination of Beth's twitching moves and her dark, almost aggressive stage act, is intriguing to watch.



Official Website | MySpace | Twitter | Facebook | Spotify

Exitmusic
On the big screen we watch Exitmusic play their show in the upper small hall. Their shoegaze inspired music sounds interesting but also quite messy. The band members look static and show no interest in the crowd. Somehow it doesn't want to stick to me and just kind of passes by.

Official Website | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Spotify



Jessie Ware
Probably because of her little hit song 'Wildest Moments', Jessie Ware is programmed to play the main stage. Her experience as backing vocalist is paying off and her voice is golden. But it never exceeds the performance of any Idols or X-Factor contestant. Music and performing is more than just being able to sing. Her songs are mediocre and boring. Her band are anonymously playing their parts and are probably session musicians just doing their job. She really needs to spice up her act and music or just stick to backing vocals.

Official Website | Soundcloud | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Spotify

Micachu & The Shapes
Without a doubt one of the weirdest bands music wise on this edition. Micachu & The Shapes, fronted by Mica Levi, are making complex music full of twists and turns. It may not be the right time and place for this band tonight. The music fails to grasp me for a bit. I'm pretty sure it's all thought-through and pretty skilled, but it sounds to me they are just making it complex to sound interesting and are really over complicating their music.

Official Website | Soundcloud | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Spotify



Wild Nothing
Over complicating is one thing Wild Nothing cannot be accused of. Their music sounds catchy and they have many nice songs. It's still a bit rough around the edges and not everything works equally well. If singer Jack Tatum could improve on his singing and use more dynamics in his vocals it would already help. Now his voice sounds a bit thin most of the time. But this band is definitely showing potential.



Official Website | MySpace | Twitter | Facebook | Spotify

Theme Park
Another band with potential are Theme Park. They are one of those band where this festival once started for in the first place. The songs are good, well-written and very pleasant to listen to. When they play their cards right they should have no trouble finding plenty of festival slots next summer.



Official Website | Soundcloud | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Spotify



The Walkmen
It was quite a surprise when The Walkmen were announced to play London Calling. Among the bands that still have to release a first album they are the biggest and most professional of all with over ten years of experience and seven studio albums. And that is showing tonight. It's the absolute highlight of the night. Hamilton Leithauser is looking confident and has a good voice. It is one of those voices though, that some people may dislike, but he's a strong singer. The set list has a lot of variation with catchy up-tempo songs, and intimate acoustic ballads. Especially Leithauser and Paul Maroon, on guitar and piano, are excelling tonight. I'm sure they have won over many fans and should be able to come back to this stage on their own next time.

Official Website | MySpace | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Spotify



Melody's Echo Chamber
We catch a bit of Melody's Echo Chamber and although Tame Impala's Kevin Parker, who I saw here less than a week ago, helped her out, it fails to impress me. Of course she's lovely to look at and sometimes the music is spacing out Parker-style. But it's not enough to keep us in. Maybe it's because we're watching it on the big screen, combined with several beers, but we decide to call it a day.

Official Website | Twitter | Facebook | Spotify

And what a night it was! Afterwards I hear we missed a great show by Chromatics later that night, not in the least because of Ruth Radelet's appearance. But today was already chuck full of good performances and promising bands, something that we missed the last couple of times we attended. It will be hard to top this in a next edition I guess.

More Pictures
More Videos

Read more!

London Calling Something To Enjoy For All

Spring is in the air, the sun is shining, the festival season is warming up so it's time for a new edition of London Calling. What bands will suprise us this time, who will be big in a few years and who won't we ever see back? Time to head to Paradiso and find out!

London Calling #1 at Paradiso, April 24 2010

A beautiful day, a good meal at Wagamama's, cold beer and good company. This night was off to a good start. We arrived early at Paradiso so it was relatively quiet and no line (although the bouncer directed me to where the queue was supposed to be). Time for the first band!

Emanuel And The Fear(Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Remarkable about this band is the addition of cello, violin and flute. This makes me sceptical as well since it may be remarkable but will it add anything? Unfortunately it doesn't and I find it actually more disturbing. With the only exception of singer Emanuel Ayvas the band looks pretty bored. And that's exactly how I feel after a while.

Joe Worricker (Ronald Says 5 out of 10)
I usually don't like singer-songwriters and this performance was certainly no exception. This young artist absolutely did his best and he may be a very talented singer but it just didn't stick. Only a few people in front of the stage seemed to enjoy it. I guess it wasn't his time yet.

Chapel Club (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Boy these guys can make a lot of noise. Their Editors inspired sound is pretty convincing. Too bad that their set is still a bit unbalanced with good and bad songs. Next time a few more good songs and these guys may get pretty far.



Esben and the Witch (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Although playing a pretty creative and varied set this Danish band is trying too hard to make arty music. I'm sure there's an audience for their music but this is just not my cup of tea.

Errors (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Lots of electronics with these guys. Their songs are well played but something is missing. After a while you kind of get the idea and it's time to move on.

General Fiasco (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
I was expecting more from this band. Their single 'Ever So Shy' is pretty catchy but turns out to be one of only two good songs. All the rest sounds alike and everything seems to be in the same tempo. Singer Owen Strathern isn't a great vocalist and the accoustic song he plays cannot save their performance.

Everything Everything (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Less can be more but telling from their band name this doesn't apply to these artists. Their songs are complex, tight and well played but it's all a bit too much. Complexitity shouldn't be the goal of a song since you will end up with music without a true soul. That's kind of what their songs sounded like. Maybe this festival wasn't the right place for them.

Hudson Mohawke (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Time to dance! This guy doesn't hesitate and from the start throws his heavy beats out there. The crowd finally can go wild and most people do. Still it could have been better. It seems he was hesitating to really light the fuse and tear the place down where he could. And please get rid of that annoying MC.

We Have Band (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Catchy New Order like tunes by this threesome with lots of beats and percussion. Nothing really that sticks out but a lively and satisfying performance. A good act for that time of the night when our good friend Mr Heineken (hello) is starting to take over as usual.



Fools Gold (Ronald Says 8 out of 10)
Another perfect timed act closes the live acts on the main stage. Swinging music with lots of percussion so just my kind of music! And they stay a lot closer to the African roots than hip and famous Vampire Weekend (nope, not a fan).

Great ending to an interesting evening with lots of variety. Some good, some bad but compliments to the programmer for serving this tasty dish. Unfortunately this is where Mr Heineken was asking most of our attention so we forgot about two more acts on the small stage. Too bad because appearently we missed one of the best acts of the weekend And So I Watch You From Afar. Hopefully I can catch them some time to make up.

Read more!

No Big Suprises At London Calling

Another stormy November month means another London Calling edition. Which bands will follow into the foot steps of major acts like Blur, Arctic Monkeys, Bloc Party and Franz Ferdinand who all started out as unknowns on the festival in the past?


London Calling at Paradiso, November 21 2009

I was still recovering from a very painful back so I was hoping the bands were good enough to make me forget about it. Of course nothing that a few beers can't fix but I was hoping there was more to enjoy than last year.

Beth Jeans Houghton (Ronald Says 5 out of 10)
I read some reviews where people actually liked this but it definitely couldn't please me. This young lady was dressed like a crossing between Amy Whinehouse and a candy store and her band got a little of that too. She seems to be aiming for similar exposure as Lady Gaga but her performance was simply clumsy with a lot of nervous chatting (but that could have been an act). But therefore it was missing any direction and just never really took off. She has a nice voice but I didn't like her songs. But that may be just a matter of taste.

The Boxer Rebellion (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Nicely styled and dressed in black they seem to have given it some thought. Too bad they didn't put the same kind of energy and thought into their music. It sounds like U2, Coldplay but never really sparkles. In the end the crowd got bored as well and were looking at their schedules for the next act.

Kid Harpoon (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Unfortunately Kid Harpoon was up next. He's a happy camper and it's pretty brave to perform by yourself with an accoustic guitar. He looked like a singer-songwriter with ADHD but in the end his songs didn't really have a lot of variation.

Wild Beasts (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Probably one of the performances many people were looking forward to after their new album got quite some exposure and good reviews. Their music is live still very interesting with nice hooks and plenty to enjoy. The dreamy songs with alternating vocals by Hayden Thorpe and bass player Tom Fleming are quite nice. In the end Thorpe's falsetto does get a bit annoying.

Violens (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
I was pleasently surprised by these guys since I was expecting something totally different but probably had some acts mixed up in my head. Nothing special about their indie rock music but they played it with a nice freshness and in a candid way that worked well. If they can come up with more original songs they may be able to take this a lot further.

Bombay Bicycle Club (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Another band that got good reviews for their album and are a band to watch. Their performance was slightly disappointing though. The beginning was especially rough since the sound was just horrible, which is beyond the band's control. After the sound was fixed more or less it still didn't really take off. The songs seem to have enough potential but somehow their performance was a bit pale. The fans that jumped the stage at the end probably will disagree though.

Grammatics (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
This band wasn't ready for the jump yet. Their music isn't exciting enough and that showed during their performance. They seem to have potential though so maybe next time?

Jack Peñate (Ronald Says 8 out of 10)
Not really my cup of tea but this guy had a great performance. His steamy and wild set had everyone jumping up and down even on the balcony. He showed a lot of effort and his cheery pop tunes appealed to a lot of people. His professional act and music is ready for the next step and I'm sure he will return to Paradiso as a single headliner soon.

After this highlight of the evening a sore back, many Heinekens and an early rise the next day made us decide to call it a night. Sorry Pyramidd, MPHO and Phenomenal Handclap Band. Hope to catch you another time.


Read more!